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fish mount advice

been getting some nice fish up here the past few years and was thinking time to get a few mounted. id like some reccommendations on who to use and if they do reproductons or use the real thing. any pics are always cool. thanks, cant wait for another month or more till the ice goes away!!!!

It's very much a case of "you get what you pay for." There are lots around that do the basics and airbrush in the approximate colors. But the more detail you want, and the more accurate you want it, the more the rate goes up.

We wanted a first rate mount for a 55# ocean king. And since it was a one-time deal, we decided it was cost-no-object. After a whole bunch of searching, we went with Blackwater Fish Replicas in Gig Harbor, WA. And man, did we get what we paid for. Scales are individually painted on in three layers of paint so you get the bright silver from one angle, but color changes as the viewing angle changes. I've never seen a skin mount or replica that looked so close to the real deal. Like I said, this was a one-and-only for us, but if I was ever to do it again, I'd still go back to them. We've since boated a king 10# bigger than the one we had mounted, but my wife is kinda proud at being able to point to the mount and say "That's not my big one." Good enough for me!

Best for you is to go to the various shops and look at their mounts, then compare what you see. Find one in your price range that meets your tastes. Blackwater has a heck of a gallery, but it still doesn't do their work justice. I assume it will be the same for any pic from any you look at on the web.